Why Didn't I Think of That? Wednesday

Each Wednesday I'll share a tip to make your week go more smoothly or just make you say "aha!"

Keep brown sugar in a ziploc bag instead of in the original box. It will stay moist longer, and it's easy to dip the measuring cup in a ziploc.

Well, That Explains a Few Things

Judging by the damage, he enjoyed feasting on the three varieties of paste tomatoes in the garden. Do you think any of the birds that stripped my green beans would eat him? Not a chance.

Jackjack, the seasoned bug stomper, dispatched him quickly and was impressed by the goo factor. It's fun to be four.

Why Didn't I Think of That? Wednesday

Each Wednesday I'll share a tip to make your week go more smoothly or just make you say "aha!"

Ditch the dryer sheets! Your clothes will get just as soft from the tumbling action of the dryer. If you miss the scent, put a few drops of essential oil onto a fabric scrap or piece of old t-shirt and toss in the dryer.

Turning a t-shirt into pajama shorts

A recent closet cleaning coincided with Jackjack running out of pajama shorts, and a repurposing idea was born.

Find an appropriate t-shirt and lay it out flat.


Grab a pair of shorts that fit well. Turn them inside out and lay them against the edge and bottom of the shirt--this will be your pattern. Since the shorts line up with the bottom of the shirt, you won't have to hem the shorts.


Trace around the edge of the shorts. Note that Mom's seamstress chalk is completely petrified after sitting in the sewing box for 30 years. A pencil works just fine.


Cut along your traced line.


Flip over the piece you just cut and lay it on the other side of the shirt to cut the second leg.


Open the pieces up and pin the right sides together. Sew along the curvy parts only.


There isn't a good way to explain the next part in words...just take a look and you'll get it. Pick up the piece you just sewed. It doesn't look anything like a pair of shorts, does it?

Grab it in the middle...

...and give it a shake. Amazing, huh? I sure thought so.


Now you just need to sew up the crotch and waist.


Be sure to leave an open space for the elastic, and use a safety pin to help guide it through.


Sew the waist closed, and presto! Pajama shorts.

Good thing I'm not a potato farmer

Because this is my entire crop.

Next year, I'm planting pumpkins in the potato patch. I know I can grow those.

Why Didn't I Think of That? Wednesday

Each Wednesday I'll share a tip to make your week go more smoothly or just make you say "aha!"

Baking with kids equals guaranteed interruptions. It's pretty easy to re-measure the flour, but you can't re-measure anything once it's been added to the flour.

To make sure you don't put the salt in twice, put all of your "small" ingredients (baking soda, salt, spices, etc) on a plate in separate piles. Once they've all been measured out, add everything to the flour at once.

Crock Pot Carmelized Onions

My Mom loves carmelized onions. I make her a big batch every so often, but it takes forever to cook them down. Then I realized that I could make them in the slow cooker! They cooked while we slept--easy and delicious.

Start with a bunch of onions. I got a huge bag at Costco and this is the perfect way to use them up.


Cut off just the top and peel off the brown skin. Now you have a naked onion with the roots attached (that will help hold it together).


I need to introduce you to an amazing device, the Borner V-Slicer Mandoline.


It makes perfect, even slices.


It's sharp as all heck, so always use the hand guard thingy.



There's practically no waste, either.


Dump all your onions into the crock pot with 2 tablespoons butter or olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon of salt.


Put the lid on and let them cook down on Low, stirring once or twice. Here they are after four hours. (A couple tablespoons of brown sugar would have been good here...maybe next time.)


I gave them one last stir and headed off to bed. In the morning, I was greeted with this beautiful sight.


Is your mouth watering? Mine was. And Mom loved them too!

Earn gift cards by doing web searches

Does your search engine pay you? Swagbucks does.

Late-breaking update! Sign up with code brownthumb (case sensitive) for 5 free Swagbucks. Code expires 9/18/09.

Swagbucks is a cool site that pays you for doing web searches. You randomly earn points (called “bucks”) by searching with them instead of Google. They import results from Google and Ask.com, so there’s no difference in your results.

To get started, go to their site (www.swagbucks.com) or add their toolbar to your browser. Fellow blogger FishMama even made it her computer’s home page so everybody in her house would remember to use it. You can earn extra bucks by connecting with them on Facebook or Twitter, too.

Trade in your bucks for gift cards—the best bargain is a $5 Amazon gift card for 45 bucks. If you do a lot of searches, you could earn an Amazon card a week this way! You can also earn gift cards for Starbucks, Target, iTunes, PayPal, and many others.

I stick to Google for image searches, but Swagbucks works just fine for everything else. And with Christmas right around the corner, gift cards will come in handy for stocking stuffers and office gifts. Give it a try today and they’ll give you 5 bucks free!

Why Didn't I Think of That? Wednesday

Each Wednesday I'll share a tip to make your week go more smoothly or just make you say "aha!"

Did your bread forget to rise? Were the fancy sesame-seed crackers rejected by the family? Maybe there's a few stale bites left in the cereal box. Don't toss those crunchless creations! Break them up and put them outside for the birds. They'll especially love any cereals with peanut butter.

State Fair is the place to be!

There's no better way to end the summer than a day at the state fair. Deep fried anything-on-a-stick, exhibits, rides, animals, and more. What a great day!

Start with a ride on the monorail to figure out your plan of attack.


Pickles, jams, and jellies, oh my! No entries from us this year, we're still beginners.


The huge, perfectly weeded garden area made me jealous.




Does this cotton remind you of Little Shop of Horrors? Or is it just me?


Watch out for the bad bugs (especially the one with the sippy cup).


Corn dogs are required fair food.

Good night!

Why Didn't I Think of That? Wednesday

Each Wednesday I'll share a tip to make your week go more smoothly or just make you say "aha!"

If you have a lot of weeding to do (and who doesn't?), wear thin medical gloves instead of regular gardening gloves. You'll have better control without the bulky fabric of gardening gloves and your hands will stay clean.

Rub some lotion on your hands before donning the gloves for extra moisturizing!